There are so many gaming platforms to choose from at this point, with an ever-expanding list of genres and titles for you to delve into, that it can feel as though entering this landscape as a beginner is simply too big of a task to undertake. However, identifying the kind of gaming experience that you want to have can help you to work out which platform is best for you, as that can then lead you towards similar experiences down the road.

Of course, you might not want to restrict yourself entirely to one type of gaming experience but understanding this as a point of entry can eventually help you to branch out to what else your platform of choice has to offer.

PC Gaming

You might regularly hear people talk about why PC gaming is the best option. The ability to customize your own machine to be powerful enough to handle an enormous variety of games could be one of the overriding reasons for this, as well as the fact that you don’t have to pay for a dedicated online service to play multiplayer games as you do with consoles. However, you might find the pressure to construct your own PC and constantly customize it to keep it in line with what the latest releases are demanding to be too much work for casual interest.

If this is the case, but you’re otherwise interested in PC gaming, you can look into buying dedicated gaming laptops or PCs that come prepared but might not reach the same highs.

Mobile Gaming

To people who value the high-budget, triple-A gaming experiences that are often touted as the best that the medium has to offer, the appeal of mobile gaming might seem somewhat elusive. However, if you’re someone who is much more interested in gameplay loops, or quicker, more immediate experiences that you can jump right into, this might seem like a natural fit. Furthermore, you might already have access to a smartphone, which can help you to explore this interest right from the get-go, without needing to purchase a whole other machine.

There are plenty of exclusive experiences that you can interact with through mobile gaming too, such as visiting a mobile casino or heavily marketed games, like Raid Shadow Legends. However, you can also access some PC and console games, like Dead Cells or Stardew Valley.

Console Gaming

Console gaming might seem like the most natural fit for some people. The device comes ready to simply plug into your TV, able to host a whole array of functions, such as Netflix or Spotify, and once you buy it, you don’t need to make modifications to it like you would for a PC. However, even if you do decide to opt for a console, you still have the hurdle of choosing which one.

While PlayStation and Xbox are more similar than Nintendo consoles, like the Switch, each one still has its exclusive games and niches that are worth making yourself aware of, so you understand which best appeals to your tastes.